We made it to the final episode of I am a Pain Patient! Don't worry, though, plenty more content to come! Our next segments will be on neurodiversity.

Today we're talking about the orchestra of the body. Pain is the most advanced protective system of your body. When pain turns chronic, our brains get practiced at sending the pain signal. Pain is bio-psycho-social.

The things going on in our body are just as important as our psychology and sociological inputs.

• Nerves love Space, Blood Flow & Movement

• There are hundreds of meters of nerves in your body

• Cords

• 50% Ligament

• Include danger sensors

• 50% Neurones

• Detect changes in space, blood flow and movement and can ignite the danger sensors stored in the ligament.

• Survival

• If your body thinks that increased nerve sensitivity will keep you safe, more stress sensors are added by DNA.

• Potential Injuries

• Cutting, squeezing, pulling, irritation and sustained reduction in blood supply. 

• They change with age

• Nerve injuries can be very hard to diagnose.

• How do they move?

• Nerves slide or glide!

• Repair after injuries and desensitizing the nervous system.

• Space

• Blood Flow

• Movement

Bones & Joint

• There are a lot of misunderstandings about your bones and joints out there. This can contribute to misconceptions leading to fear of movement, pain or damage.

• Here’s what Bones are

• Living healing structures

• Covered by a super sensitive outer layer prepared to protect you.

• Inside the bone are danger sensors designed to help you stop and tend to your body should a bone break.

• As living healing structures they can heal if there is damage.

• Joints

• Joint pains are described in mechanical view from the brain (idea of grinding)

• The speed of change affects the brain’s danger processing.

• Slow changes of aging are not perceived as a threat.

• Abrupt change is received as dangerous.

• Thrive with movement and regular compression.

• Deterioration 

• Happens to everyone over time.

• Break-Fix model of Chiropractic care

Inflammation & Inflammation Soup

• Inflammation as a Defense Mechanism: 

• First alert

• Brain

• Your brain is immediately interested in inflammation.

• Cut to the front of the line!

• Starts the process to engage your white blood cells and immune response.

• Through release of chemicals from the damaged cells.

• Inflammation Soup

• What starts as your first alert leads to continued swelling

• Natural alarm to nervous system initiates additional nociception sensors to the affected area.

• However, starts a cycle that includes more swelling and more nociceptive sensors, elongating the presence of inflammation.

• Anti-Inflammatories: reduce the chemicals produced in your blood cells, to help deactivate the first alert system.

1. Muscles:

• Postural

• Phasic Muscles

• Muscle Mechanics

• Muscles have many sensors 

• Muscles can become unhealthy & week, especially underused or misused

• Muscles are responsive, & stretchy & are difficult to injure

• Muscles receive great blood supply to assist in healing.

• Altered muscle activity is part of the response to injury and threat. 

• Meant to be short-term alterations

• Long-term can lead to under allocation of blood flow to postural muscles

• Muscle activity is about making sense of the world and how you interact with it.

1. Skin & Soft Tissue & the Virtual Road Map

• Skin makes up 15-20% of the body’s weight

• Making it the body’s most critical protector.

• This first responder adds to the roadmap of the body, present in the brain.

• If you demand more of a body part, then that body part will have a bigger representation in the brain.

• Skin over damaged muscle or tissues can become oversensitized to where little to no input can cause pain (light brushing or certain clothes). It’s why I can’t wear scarves.

• Damaged skin heals quickly

• Skin has a high density of sensors

• Skin is mobile & likes to be mobile.

• Fascia, a tough strong tissue, also contains a lot of danger sensors and lies under the skin

• Massaged skin sends useful messages to the brain & refreshes the virtual roadmap of the body.

• Seek something to touch that will remind you that you exist.
• Seek something to see, that will elevate your spirit and draw you forward.
• Seek something to smell, that will draw you into th epresent moment.
• Seek something to listen to that calms your soul our allows you to feel your feelings. Singing engages your vagus nerve and includes deep belly breaths. Both can calm your nervous system.
• Seek something to taste; mindfully eat one serving of a favorite treat, close your eyes and really live it.

You are not alone, you matter.

• Most sensors are in your brain

• Sensors only live a few days & are constantly refreshing

• Sensors are constantly changing based your environment

• Your brain can increase or decrease sensor production to promote health & wellness.

• Temperature: more pain in cold temps

• Stress: survival situation: cortisol

• Blood Flow: moving blood to muscles we need to flee

• Movement & Pressure: making your body more/less sensitive to movement

• Immunity: Responds to inflammation

Why the Hiatus

• Divorce

• Wounds

• Healing

• Fight or Flight Mode

• Healing and owning my story

• I am more myself for having suffered.

• Using these podcasts to write my book.

• I am planning on becoming a certified wholeness coach in the future.

• Therapy helps with healing from the past

• Spiritual Direction helps us in discerning our future

• Coaching is about achieving your goals and dreams

• The Lord plans to prosper you.

Sleep is the first thing that your primary care physician will want to work with you on in your road to wellness. There is quite a bit that goes into healthy sleep hygiene and I'm sure there's even more than what I was able to cover here, but these are some of the fundamentals I have found useful as a chronic pain patient.